Secret to Making the Best Coffee

I’ve been keeping a secret from not just all of you, but from my friends and family as well. I have the secret to the best coffee ever.

The best kept secret to making the most perfect cup of Joe is…VANILLA SUGAR! It’s so delicious you will be stashing it in your purse because you’ll NEVER want coffee again without it.

It’s SO simple.

Take regular ol’ white sugar—I love natural cane sugar but it doesn’t absorb the vanilla properly—and fill it half way into a mason jar. You can buy fresh vanilla pods at any grocery store. I got mine at Whole Foods but I don’t think it matters too much. Slice the pod right down the middle to expose the meat. Place the pod into the glass jar, and fill the remaining amount of sugar to the rim. Store in your cool/dark cabinet. The longer you have the sugar, the more tasty and fragrant it gets.

I discovered this tip two years ago when I checked a French cookbook out from the library to collect some new recipes (I can’t remember the same for the life of me but when I do I will be shouting it from the roof tops so stay tuned). This Madame had called for vanilla sugar in her baking recipes, which she recommended you keep a jar of in your baking cabinet. She suggested you use this concoction whenever she mentions “sugar.” So I did, and it is delicious in cakes and breads and the most divine in banana bread.

Since I take my coffee with extra cream and sugar, I thought it might be nice to try the vanilla sugar (I don’t actually like the taste of coffee which is why I take it light and sweet). The result is the BEST cup of coffee ever! Try it out and let me know what you think!

Other Tips:

1.There is nothing like fresh ground coffee! It’s so easy to grind your own beans. You can get a grinder almost anywhere and they range from $30–12 . Plus, you can buy beans in bulk and keep them for up to a year in a cabinet, which saves a ton of money.

2. French press! When I make my coffee in the morning, I am making it for just me so there is no need to make a whole pot. A French press makes coffee strong and delicious. I barely need one cup.

3. Save your French press coffee! I save my left over French press coffee to either make ice coffee later (just store in the fridge) OR pour into an ice cube tray to add it to ice coffee or a smoothie.